Souher Al Chaar’s Post

🌳 How Utrecht Succeeded 📌 In the 70s, part of the canal surrounding Utrecht's historic city center was filled with concrete to create an urban road. 📌 The planners believed this would improve access to the city center and reduce traffic. 📌 However, it increased both traffic and air pollution. A 2002 referendum led citizens to demand the canal's restoration and the removal of the road. 📌 A new project prioritizing pedestrians and cyclists, and turning the canal area into a park, was approved. By 2018, the roads were removed, and the canal was restored. 📌 The Catharijnesingel canal renovation project won the 11th European Prize for Urban Public Space. Isn't it wonderful? In the future, reclaiming our concrete-filled spaces with greenery will be a priority for our cities too. Cities belong to people, not cars. They should be redesigned as important living spaces, not viewed through the lens of concrete and profit. Here are a few more photos from Utrecht showing the importance of this approach.

New paper in Cities on the transformation of Rotterdam from national sick man to a capital of cool: To understand this transformation, Gijs Custers and I compiled different bodies of academic literature on the City of Rotterdam that help to understand the mixed views on how Rotterdam is functioning. On the one hand, we see a populist and repressive form of urban disadvantage management, which is highly politicised and considered discriminatory. On the other hand, we see major urban redevelopment through new flagships and water safety measures, which are depoliticised and technocratic. Together, these developments contribute to a new city image and urban divisions: repressive for some, attractive for others. Read more here (Open Access) ⤵ https://lnkd.in/etBbH7zw

We hope you're following along as we delve into the 27 Charter principles of the Charter of the #NewUrbanism! One scale found in the Charter is The Block, The Street, and The Building. 23/27

It was an honour to contribute to this book and the work of the Scientific Committee of Consiglio Nazionale Architetti Pianificatori Paesaggisti e Conservatori. We focused on offering practical recommendations and advocating for a new urban planning model in Italy centred on the concept of urban proximity. To start, here are three key policies the Italian government could adopt in its upcoming national Urban Regeneration Law: --> #Reform the #LeggeTognoli Law to #eliminate #parking #minimums in well-connected cities. Around the world, cities are moving away from these outdated requirements. Why should a national law force cities and developers to build parking in areas that already have strong public transport and active mobility infrastructure? This is yesterday’s solution! --> Legislate to #control #urban #sprawl. Given Italy's current demographic trends, there is no longer any justification for expanding urban areas. —> tackle #home #vacancy in cities taking inspiration from the Law and policies developed in Denmark, Vancouver and Amsterdam! 🙏 --> Giuseppe Cappochin 💡 --> Demetrio Scopelliti Matteo Motti Giancarlo Tancredi Simona Collarini Carmen Salvaggio Pierfrancesco Maran MEP Maurizio Veloccia Peter Nijkamp Dr. Karima Kourtit (MBA) Anna Tuteur Vincenzo Baldo Nicholas Boys Smith MBE Matteo Colleoni Pilar Conesa Jorge Pérez-Jaramillo.Arq. Frédéric J. Saliez Alice Siragusa Nikos Fintikakis Antonio Raffaele Riverso Catherine Arod-Gall Laura Petrella Chiara Martinuzzi Pablo Fernández Marmissolle-Daguerre filippo barbera Beniamino Murgante Alfonso Annunziato Enrica Papa Benjamin Büttner Sebastian Seisenberger Mengqiu Cao João Filipe Teixeira Arkadiusz Ptak Federica Gaglione, Carmela Gargiulo, Floriana Zucaro

The METREX #ProductiveCity Expert Group met in November under the coordination of Adrian Vickery Hill to continue its exploration into making space for re-introducing #production in cities. With a twofold focus, this online event has looked at the cities of The Hague and Oslo which are witnessing profound redevelopments where expensive real estate and high demand for housing tend to lead the transformation, yet a new commitment from the respective public authorities seek to keep production embedded in the urban fabric, introducing innovative and #experimental #models to diversify the local economy. Both examples show cities that are rediscovering the crucial role of production-based activities as part of a healthy economic ecosystem, yet are coming to terms with their role as facilitators, developers or drivers of diversified economic development. One of the significant aspects that emerged during the discussion is the need for new planning tools and #concepts around the place of #production, #distribution and #lastmile #logistics system in urban centres. Thanks to Ida Søgnen Tveit, urban planner in the City of Oslo, Norway and Jerryt Krombeen, senior urbanist for the Binckhorst, City of The Hague, The Netherlands for their inspiring contributions! Curious to know more about the discussion? Check it out at:https://lnkd.in/dD78m3i8 Thierry Petit, Peter Pol, Irene Mortari, Thomas Kiwitt, Peter Austin, Sebastien Rolland, Rudolfs Cimdins, Soňa Raszková, Emma de Wijs, Clément Jaquemet, Michael Rosenberger, Alfredo Corbalan, Ingrid den Heeten, Paula Correia Afonso, Dalila Ghodbane Stephen Gallagher Henk Bouwman  Viviana Rubbo     

How do Dutch cities differ from others when it comes to architecture and modern innovation? I highly admire the incredible well planned, innovative well thought and very high quality that goes behind Dutch city infrastructure. Netherlands and Amsterdam especially has some of the most crazy looking modern new buildings that look incredible from architecture perspective. In this incredible well made video, check the detailed thought and planning for a newly constructed neighborhood (Houthavens) which is one of the most expensive neighborhoods very close to Amsterdam city center (2kms away on west) Amsterdam is one of the most hot housing markets in Europe now, with next to impossible to find an affordable living space in a short time. It also happens that I happened to live on a big barge 60 meter boat of a Dutch friend parked in the waters here just next to the big tall [--] shaped building (mid left) here a few years ago for a couple of weeks when the first phase had just finished. I kayaked solo next to this tall building in my friend's kayak in these waters then admiring its presence. My first ever kayaking. I had no idea of this incredible plan behind this new neighborhood then. #city #infrastructure #urban #municipality #amsterdam

We're exploring the 27 Charter Principles of the Charter of the #NewUrbanism. The principles are organized by scale, including The Block, The Street, and The Building. 26/27 https://lnkd.in/gia8_5e

Adams & Adams recently engaged with the Cape Verde Registry to discuss its collaboration with WIPO, suggested fee updates, and discussed a new Industrial Property Code aimed at tackling and resolving ongoing issues regarding capacity and delays. Click here to find out more: https://buff.ly/3ONLYRn #AfricaUpdate #adamsadamslaw #africanlawfirm

A new paper from two of our colleagues, Viktor Varjú and Ágnes Óvári about #circular transition potentials from Pécs, Hungary.

Reducing individual car use in our cities offers significant benefits. A new ambitious plan for New York’s iconic Fifth Avenue proposes wider sidewalks, a reduction of car lanes from five to three, and increased greenery. The expected outcomes include a safer pedestrian environment, reduced pollution, and higher real estate values. Notably, the city estimates that this project will pay for itself in under five years through increased property and sales tax revenues. #nyc #sustainabledesign